


Crusader

by railise



Category: Robin Hood BBC
Genre: Crusades, Friendship, Gen, Pre-Canon, War
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-09-13
Updated: 2010-09-13
Packaged: 2017-10-11 18:51:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 425
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/115780
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/railise/pseuds/railise
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Three drabbles and one flash fic about Robin and Much on Crusade.  Pre-series.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. An Oasis

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A good friend is a true treasure.

The desert air scoured his skin. The heat was beyond oppressive, a chef preparing his flesh, the sand waiting to digest him when he was done cooking. The sight of men hacked apart was only trumped in his mind by the tangy smell of their blood. Home was little more than a mirage, something almost within his vision, which disappeared whenever he tried to approach it.

But at least, through it all, he had his closest friend by his side, the one person he could turn to, confide in, lean on. With a smile, Robin offered his waterskin to Much.


	2. Bad Sign

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Robin and Much have a mystery on their hands.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Inspired by [this image prompt](http://pics.livejournal.com/rochvelleth/pic/0002z3fd).

Robin turned the twisted metal over in his hand. He had been unsettled enough when they reached the Crusader camp, only to find it gone. Not deserted; gone, as if had never been there. It should have been reassuring to find proof that they were not in the wrong place, but this was worse. It indicated that something had, indeed, happened.

"Are you sure we should've gone east?" Much called. "Maybe it was south-- what's that?" He came over and examined the ravaged buckle, then met Robin's troubled gaze. "Where are they?" he whispered.

"I have no idea," Robin murmured.


	3. Gift

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Robin's skill in battle is appreciated by some.

Some men found it difficult, becoming blinded by sweat and tears, burnt by bile.

But Robin took to it easily. It was all a matter of mechanics and grace; a dance. _Step, swing, turn, slice._ It was only later, when the battle was ended and he was left standing amidst a sea of bodies, that he realized what he had done.

His commanders said he had a gift. In the nights, when the smell of blood would not leave his nostrils, and all he saw when he tried to sleep was death shrouding the eyes of his opponents, he cursed the giver.


	4. Sunset

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Robin prepares for bed in the Holy Land.

The sunset on the desert turned the whole world orange. The Crusader camp was preparing for bed, ready for more marching on the morrow. A few heartier souls polished their weapons, rather than heading for their bunks. Robin really should be doing one or the other.

Instead, he stared at the horizon, letting the setting blaze burn an imprint onto his eyes. He thought it was a technique that should be taught, and had shared it with Much. But, perhaps it was just that no one else needed it.

The shadow took up most of his vision by the time the sky began to go dark. When he turned to go into his tent, it concealed the bodies still strewn across the sand.


End file.
